Self disclosures touch Rs 3.45b

MyRepublica.com, 10-Feb-09
Milan Mani Sharma

KATHMANDU, Feb 10: Inland Revenue Department (IRD) on Tuesday collected revenue worth Rs 205 million under the Voluntary Disclosure of Income Scheme (VDIS), as people who had not paid taxes earlier for their property rushed to legalize their property on the second last day of the scheme.

On the day, some 500 persons disclosed their property worth Rs 2.05 billion, said Kapil Dev Ghimire, director general of IRD. “That raised our collections to Rs 345 million under VDIS,” he told myrepublica.com.

Following Tuesday’s disclosure, the volume of property disclosed has soared to Rs 3.45 billion. It generated Rs 345 million in revenue to the government. The highest single disclosure recorded on the day was Rs 1 billion, Ghimire told myrepublica.com.

“Collections grew by more than 150 percent on Tuesday compared to Monday. As more people are flocking in to disclose their property, we are hopeful about collecting about Rs 1 billion in revenue through VDIS,” said Ghimire.

So far, about 750 people have legalized their property under the scheme.

Moreover, in a bid to meet the VDIS’ revenue target of Rs 1 billion, IRD continued to send SMS, make phone calls and send reminder emails and letters potential taxpayers.

Ghimire hopes that a large number of taxpayers will turn up on Wednesday -- the last day of the scheme -- to benefit from the scheme.

The government announced VDIS in this year’s budget in October, 2008 giving opportunity to the people, who have amassed property without paying due taxes, to pay taxes and legalize their property.

It has even promised it will not seek the sources of the income thus disclosed in a bid to lure people to come into the tax net. But to the people who refuse to take benefit of the scheme, the government has warned of tougher actions like confiscation of property and fine and penalty up to 100 percent.

Meanwhile, the business community resisting the scheme has demanded the government to extend the deadline of the scheme, which expires on February 11, 2009.

Organising a press meet in the evening, six business organizations, including Federation of Nepalese Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FNCCI), Confederation of Nepalese Industries, Nepal Chamber of Commerce (NCC) and Nepal Bankers Association demanded the government not to seek sources of initial investment, as entrepreneurs have been paying taxes for their existing property.

"The government must clear the list of the people who should disclose their property under the scheme, and extend the deadline to enable them comply with it," said Kush Kumar Joshi, FNCCI president. NCC president Surendra Bir Malakar even announced of launching a street protest if the government did not extend the scheme.

However, IRD chief Ghimire said that the scheme would not be extended. "We have clarified the business community´s confusions now and again. There is no need to extend its (VDIS) deadline," he told myrepublica.com.